After the fall of Saddam Hussein's government in April 2003, the opportunity to participate in the U.S.-led effort to reconstruct Iraq attracted professionals, Arabic-speaking academics, development specialists and war-zone adventurers. But they had to get past Jim O'Beirne's Pentagon office before going to Baghdad.

To pass muster with O'Beirne, a political appointee, applicants didn't need to be experts in the Middle East or in postconflict reconstruction. They did need, however, to be a member of the Republican Party.
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.The decision to send the loyal and the willing instead of the best and the brightest now is regarded by many people involved in the 3 ˝-year effort to stabilize and rebuild Iraq as one of the Bush administration's gravest errors. Many selected because of their political fidelity spent their time trying to impose a conservative agenda on the postwar occupation that sidetracked more important efforts and squandered good will among Iraqis.
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One former CPA employee who had an office near O'Beirne's wrote an e-mail to a friend describing the recruitment process: "I watched résumés of immensely talented individuals who had sought out CPA to help the country thrown in the trash because their adherence to 'the President's vision for Iraq' [a frequently heard phrase at CPA] was 'uncertain.' I saw senior civil servants from agencies like Treasury, Energy ... and Commerce denied advisory positions in Baghdad that were instead handed to prominent RNC [Republican National Committee] contributors."

This is a very extensive article so I did not post the entire thing here. The title is linked to it.

This seems to be business as usual for the party in power. Truly unfortunate for the people of Iraq.

You nailed it with that last line, daT. When the dems get their shot the same thing will happen, except the social patina of the country (nee world?) will be written by the Hollywood psychos and George Soros's of the world. Same song, different melody.

Also, how many dems are in the sort of industries needed for rebuilding a nation? I mean, doing the real work, not the latte and croissant sipping "we should do something" crowd.

Geez, that is a generalaztion. I could show you a good many of dems who work very hard. Harder than any of us will ever work on this board. So I think it is rather insulting to say what you said, don't you think? How would you feel if I told you that you are a trust baby and have not worked a hard day in your life, just because you are a repub?

Good point. I should have said, "Latte sipping, croissant nibbling gurly men".

As far as insult, you're starting to sound like a member of the permanently aggrieved crowd. Also, the point stands. How many Lib/Dems own construction company. Tech companies, like Loral that sold the ChiComs satellite technology, absolutely. But as far as earth moving and actually BUILDING stuff, well, that's a conservative domain.

You nailed it with that last line, daT. When the dems get their shot the same thing will happen, except the social patina of the country (nee world?) will be written by the Hollywood psychos and George Soros's of the world. Same song, different melody.

It appears history would not back up that assertion. And why is it that when faced with such overwhelming evidence of inept chronyism you fall back on everyone does it? What is that attitude going to do to bring about the SWEEPING CHANGES needed to correct the disaster that is Iraq?